CAST

AARON & JESSICA GRIMMER: Aaron & Jessica Grimmer are co-owners of a growing restaurant group in Portland, OR. They married in 2004 in Provo, UT, where they opened their first restaurant, Pudding on the Rice. In 2008, they moved their family and their cafe to Portland, OR. From 2012-2016, they opened four additional concepts in downtown and northwest Portland: Picnic House (2012), Barlow (2014), High Noon (2015), and CHKCHK (2016). CHKCHK, the most recent addition to the restaurant group, features a community-minded business model that donates fives percent of gross sales directly to the Q Center, a Portland non-profit that provides a safe space to support and celebrate LGBTQ diversity, visibility and community building.

MEET THE CHARACTERS:

AARON: Aaron, the castle-dwelling son of the recently-retired Grim Reaper, balances a crippling weakness for dad jokes and tuxedos with an inexhaustibly Freudian desire to transform the family business into something more subtle, refined, and- dare we say- artsy.

JESSICA: Being married to the gatekeeper of the underworld is a full-time job. Or at least that’s Jessica’s interpretation. The stylish Jessica passes her time with a glass of libations in hand, allaying Aaron’s many trepidations about his life’s work, while meticulously planning elaborate, themed dinner parties for the Grimmer's lineup of ill-fated, celebrity guests.

PHILLIP J. BERNS: Phillip J. Berns is a local actor living and working in Portland, OR. Holding dual degrees in Theatre Arts and Advertising from Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI, Phillip is a proud founding company member of Post5 Theatre in Southeast Portland. In addition to performing, Phillip is also a co-producer of his annual one-man performance of "A Christmas Carol". Acclaimed recent roles include Neechee in Stupid Kids (Post 5, 2016), The Fool in King Lear (Post5, 2016), Heinrich Huber-Hoffman in A KBNB Kristmas Karol (Bag & Baggage Productions, 2015), and Alan in Equus (Post 5, 2015). Phillip has had the opportunity to perform in a variety of venues, including the beautiful Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, the historic Smock Alley in Dublin, and Bagby Hot Springs in Oregon.

MEET THE CHARACTER:

PHILLIP: The loyal, light-footed, and, well…creepy butler of Blackberry Castle, Phillip dutifully caters each and every morbid whim and fancy of the Grimmers.

TOM LINDSTEDT: From his very first stints at bartending, Tom has enjoyed scripting cocktail menus within specific themes. Overseeing two restaurant cocktail programs (Biwa, Little Bird) prior to establishing those at Barlow and High Noon, Tom is drawn as much to the educational aspects of craft cocktailing as the actual service and hospitality elements. Taking on a larger audience with Last Meal and constructing drinks that are at once innovative and approachable—all fitting into the unique premise of the show—has been a fulfilling challenge.